Joined: Fri Jul 15, 2005 2:34 pmPosts: 6906Location: Within 60 Miles of the Northern Anthracite Field

Now that the winter is upon us, and the minings season is approaching, time for us to do a little maintenence on our lamps. if anyone is having trouble getting theirs to light heres the cure:

1. first remove the top of the lamp so you only have the bottom portion.

2. next remove the set screw for the the flint and remove the flint and spring.

3. right next to the wick is a small post sticking up with a cap on it. remove this cap by sliding it away from the wick.

4. unscrew the wick all the way using the adjusting screw on the bottom. there is a piece of threaded brass crimped to the wick. once the brass is off the screw, grab the wick with pliers and pull the crimped brass down exposing more wick. now trim off 1/8 to 1/4 inch off of the wick. slide the brass back into the shaft onto the screw and turn it down using the adjustment on the bottom of the base.

5. replace the cap on the housing.

6. next get your good eyes out and remove the small c-clip on the top of the striker wheel. once you accomplish this, remove the washer on top of the wheel and the striker wheel. take note of the top and bottom of the wheel,this is very important as the wheel is directional. mark the top with a pen if you need to. be careful not to disrupt the coil spring under the wheel. also do not loose the small c-clip, its easy to do.

7. take a wire brush and clean all the junk out of the striker wheel and replace on the shaft.

8. next install the washer and reinstall the c-clip.

9. refill your lamp with new naptha or coleman fuel.

10. install the flint, spring and set screw.

11. test light the lamp, it should spark right up.

12. clean the gauses (cone screens) and lightly oil them. the first time you light the lamp it will smoke a bit as the oil burns off.

13 assemble the lamp and light it again.

14. clean your wick after every other use or in dirty conditions using an old tooth brush, or your wifes or girlfriends. but youll only do that once

if you have any trouble with your safety lamp, feel free to email me, pm me or discuss it here. that is preferable as others can learn also.

The bottom pin is jammed and doesn’t turn. The top igniter part doesn’t turn and missing the flint, needs some serious repair. I wanted to get it restored to a better working condition. I have two lamps and the other is better but neither will light by using the pin underneath to light it. I have to unscrew the top and use a lighter to light it. I had thought about just buying a new one but I would rather try to restore the both of them first.

Regards the glass for the Koehler lamps. I had dropped the glass for my Eccles safety lamp and ordered a replacement from the company in England. I have provided their web site. http://www.protectorlamp.co.uk/I am sure that it would fit the Koehler,but you could always check with them. The cost ,including postage to Delaware ,was $36.49 American and I used Paypal. I also have a phone # for a guy in England who deals in replacement safety lamp parts, probably Eccles ,for any of you that have this type lamp. If any of you want it, please let me know.

I have a feeling that it was normal for the glass to break and that there were companies out there who supplied replacement glass. I have seen many lamps which don't have the lines on the glass for monitoring the height of the flame. The only thing I can think of is that perhaps the glass without the lines might be replacement glass ... Or perhaps it could be the other way, but I doubt it.

Yeah next time I see you Chris I will bring both of them and we can make one good one. Then that way I don't think that I will need to many replacement parts. Ebay is good to a point but the prices that people want are

I picked up a diamond cut reflector for my head lamp and the price was but I know that it will last so didn't mind the cost. It works real good! See ya

Joined: Fri Jul 15, 2005 2:34 pmPosts: 6906Location: Within 60 Miles of the Northern Anthracite Field

these lamps are very sophisticated........ to put it out, lower the wick with the thumb screw in the bottom then give it a deliberate tap on the bottom. directly after you fill it, the fuel to air mixture inside the lamp may be too high (usually because of some spilling) but hold the lamp by the hook then give it a good spin by the base. this will introduce fresh air into the lamp through the vent holes in the top. you can also extinguish it that way after you lower the flame to a quarter inch or so but tapping it strongly on the bottom works best for me. dont burn the flame too high or the lamp will overheat and your screens will burn through. the flame should be between 3/4 of an inch and an inch tall. the lamps were designed to run a shift, so they will usually run just over 10 hours on a fill. if you leave it set for a little while the fuel will evaporate out of them. we still use these to compliment the digital gas detectors, even in the active mines. a flame will never lie to you........

If a replacement is not easily available, you can try a place that supplies borosilicate (eg, Pyrex, Kimex, etc) glass tube for the scientific glassblowing community...a place like Wale Apparatus would likely have it.....not necessarily cheap, but you can get whatever diameter, length, and wall thickness you need......alternately, if you are really lucky and live in a place with such a glassblowing shop (think university research lab type place) nearby then you could likely find a scrap that someone would cut to size for you pretty cheaply.....just remember, it must be hard glass (boro, not lead or soda) in order to take the heat without cracking, and if you can get it annealed after cutting that would be a plus.

_________________"If we knew what we were doing, it wouldn't be called research." -A. Einstein

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